Woodworking blog entries tagged with 'tool'

This is a tool that is used to adjust the position of a sound post in a violin. A sound post is like a length of dowel that is wedged between the top and back of a string instrument to help transmit the sound from the strings to the back (little more complicated actually, but that explanation will suffice.)
I bought one of these that is about 8 inches, but discovered during use on the smaller violins that a more petite model would be handy. I used two 6 inch brass rulers, $1 each on...

It has been a while but I am finally back onto my tool chest build. I finished the back and came up with a new idea on the tool rack that I haven’t seen done yet on another dutch tool chest. I believe it maximizes the amount of tools it can hold and works great. I am using a 1” oak dowel that is going through both sides of the chest. I glued, wedged and flush cut to the outside of the chest. Next is to work on the saw till and dividers for my bench planes. Stay tuned.

Last week I found a violin in the bone pile that looks like it’s trying to crack in half lengthwise. Not having any appropriate clamp to hold such a thing together for gluing, I put my mind to it and came up with this clamp.
I made it out of 3/4 inch mahogany, using two pieces on each side. I did that so that I could easily create the groove on the inside of the curved parts to engage the lip on the edge of the violin. The groove is shallow so the clamp body won’t press...

Yes, there’s supposed to be two “anarchists” in the title. Perhaps I’m confused.
I’ve read a bit about the anarchist’s tool chest. I started with a tool chest similar to the common anarchist’s tool chest, though at the time I didn’t know I was an anarchist. That box held a Black and Decker “skilsaw”, a Craftsman plunge router, a pair of drills (B&D and Craftsman), a Stanley handsaw, a Bailey #4 plane, and a square.
I built ...

In looking around for the best buys on the tools I actually have to buy versus make to repair bowed string insytruments, I encountered a tool that I haven’t missed having—yet. Seeing that it’s looks like a counter sink bit on a handle, I made one.
The handle is a turned spindle that I saved from a piece of furniture for just such a use. I just had to shorten it and drill a hole in one end to accept the counter sink bit on one end. I glued it in with epoxy and...

View on YouTube
The video covers mostly the tool side of things but I’d like to talk a bit about the concepts behind some of the first tools you buy. This is mostly just my opinion and my experience speaking (which isn’t much compared to some!).
My main reason for the list in the video is as follows. You want to buy tools that help you develop confidence as well as skills. Buying an axe as your first woodworking tool is something that I recommend each budding woodworker do.
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I needed a place to use a chisel to cut small wedges out of maple for rehairing violin bows. The benchtop has a piece of carpet on it and I didn’t want to damage anything anyway. I made a small bench dog to give me something to push against and cut into without worry. It’s made with a scrap of oak that I had. The cleats are just glued on but are holding up fine.
The wedge I msade is the small bit of wood with the dot on it just at the corner of the chisel. I believe itR...

I’m a big believer in having the right tools for the job; I’m a process engineer by trade and in my experience the analysis of any given task/process invariably reveals a substandard or nonexistent tool for completion… this bench is no exception.
When my attention turned to laying lines for the legs and aprons where 90° was no longer my reference point, I realized I was going to be relying on angle/miter gauges for accurate layout. As I mentioned before, I’ve never ...

I already own two violin size sound post setting tools which I purchased online. The other day I was setting a sound post in a less than full size instrument and I got the feeling I was stretching the limits of the tool. I got the post set successfully, but it entered my mind that a smaller tool might be handy for if I should have to work on a 1/4 size violin or smaller someday.
So today I went down into my woodshop, took a piece of 1/4 iinch flat brass and went to work with the grinde...